Charlotte, James and their seven children are independent spirits, united by strong family values.Living in a mining community is never easy, and when the shadow of impending war threatens, they must pull together to face the hardship to come. Can this close-knit family overcome whatever tragedy life throws at them?The Black Mountains, a moving saga of love, happiness and heartbreak, is perfect for fans of Rosie Goodwin and Katie Flynn. ‘Sensitive and exceptionally polished’ Manchester Evening News The Hillsbridge Sagas The Black Mountains The Emerald Valley The Hills and the Valley A Family Affair

    Ruth Conroy is the pride of her father and brothers and the despair of her mother, who fears that her daughter’s unconventional ways will prevent her from marrying. Goaded by her mother’s nagging, Ruth declares that she will only marry a man who can beat her in a horse race. As she is an expert horsewoman, her challenge seems unlikely to be met. But family friend Robert Holloway has always loved Ruth, and if it takes a horse race to win her, then an equestrian he will be, even though he is a poor rider. Out of friendship, Ruth agrees to teach him how to ride with skill, never realizing that his goal is to win the race and win her hand in marriage. When she is challenged, she must decide what she will win or lose in this race for her heart.

    So at twenty-one she escapes to London to train as a nurse, where she gathers many admirers - none more dashing than RAF officer Sandy Redfern, with whom she falls in love.But the coming of war, with the chaos of the Blitz, brings upheavals and unforeseen entanglements. On hearing of Sandy's reckless affair with a married woman, a heartbroken Lily throws herself into her work. Then further changes in circumstances bring her to a busy RAF hospital in Hampshire, where a faithful childhood sweetheart persuades her to become engaged to him.And then fate brings Sandy Redfern back into her life, physically scarred by burns and inwardly embittered. What of their once passionate love and her present commitment? Can the past ever be recaptured?

    Bess and James played together as equals when they were children, but now James is engaged to the more socially acceptable Annabel Hadleigh.Bess takes up a teaching post in London but when war breaks out and London schoolchildren are evacuated she returns to Foxden to organise a troop of Land Girls. Traditional barriers come crashing down when Flying Officer James Foxden falls in love with Bess. But by this time Bess has come to know and respect Annabel. Can she be with James if it means breaking her best friend’s heart?And besides, Bess has a shameful secret that she has vowed to keep from James at any cost…

    And with her grandmother’s health declining, Clara is living with the weight of the world on her shoulders – but her grandmother isn’t having any of it.Feisty and tenacious, Eugenia isn’t about to let her granddaughter throw her life away – and so she advertises on Clara’s behalf as a mail-order bride.Clara is furious when she discovers her grandmother’s plot, but as Matt’s response catches her eye, Clara warms to the idea of marrying a sheriff and starting over in a new town.Together, Clara and her grandmother set out for Iron Creek. But the journey is long and hard going – and things only get worse as their wagon train crosses paths with a gang of bandits.Clara can only hope that Matt will come for them before it is too late – but with such a rocky start, what hope will be left for their future together?The Sheriff’s Mail-Order Rescue is a thrilling romance that will charm its way into your heart. Will Matt and Clara find a way to be together? Or is their relationship about to end before it has even begun?

    Working as a supervisor on a production line for planes, Hildy believes she is doing her part to help with the war effort. But troubles at home, with her dependent and overly-protective mother, make it harder for her to findhappiness as she hides her relationship with an American GI.Meanwhile, Cora has lost both her parents in the Blitz and is still reeling from the devastating loss. Along with her friend, Belle, the two young women turn to the dark streets of Southampton to work on the game, wishing to raise enough money for a new beginning elsewhere and put their pasts behind them.For all three women, the war provides challenges and hardships that they will only emerge from by maintaining courage, strength and, above all, hope.

    But before Meg can take her first steps into the unknown alone, she must look to her past. Why, she wonders, did her mother wear a wedding ring but never marry? Why, for instance, does the tallyman never call at No. 3 Tippet's Yard to collect any rent? He does everywhere else. With Ma gone, Meg must go back to her roots to uncover her 'family tree'. However, the process of simplfying her life leads to unforseen complications. But there's always Kip, reliable and loving, to pick up the pieces of her unsolved life and love.

    The day came when she was so hungry, so tired and worried, that she was reduced to going to Akersfield market and asking Dick Fletcher for help - Dick who had loved her years ago, who was now running his own successful market garden - and who was engaged to someone else. It was Dick who took her back home to her village in the dales, gave her a job, helped her to gain her self-respect again. But the time came when she knew she must stand on her own - make a life for herself and her daughters without him, and use all her courage and determination to become successful. It was to take many years, and all the tragedy of the 1914 war before Eleanor was able to repay Dick Fletcher for the great debt she owed him.

    A foreign artist and war hero seeking refuge from the world has been murdered. Marie Paige, the frail, sickly wife of the village doctor, lies beside him beaten into a coma.The police arrest Marie's husband, convinced that they are looking at a crime of passion. But Dr. Paige finds himself with an unlikely champion: Fr. Gabriel, a blundering but brilliant Benedictine priest who believes in his innocence and feels compelled to search for the truth.In a country struggling to come to terms with the devastation of the Second World War, even a secluded English village has its share of secrets and broken lives. It is not long before Fr. Gabriel and his companions find themselves embarking on a dangerous journey into the victims' troubled war histories and a chapter of Europe's bloodiest conflict that is almost too terrible to be acknowledged.

    During and after dinner he had nothing to excite him save the receipt of a letter which somewhat annoyed him, and that his wife consumed rather more wine than he considered to be good for her health. Immediately after retiring to his room he was seized with symptoms of irritant poisoning, and despite every effort made on his behalf, he succumbed to its effects. An inquest was held, which vexed the minds of the Coroner’s jury to a degree without precedent in Coroners’ Inquest Law, and an open verdict was returned. However, the matter will not rest there, for after questions in Parliament, a second inquest has been called under suspicion that Mr Charles Petrie was murdered. * * * Who poisoned Charles Petrie? Dr James Collymore, a man familiar with poisons, a man harbouring a dark secret that, if exposed, would ruin his career; Florrie, the maid who supplied Charles with his bedtime drink; Bert Kemp, a disgruntled groom, who used poisons in his work, who four months previously had predicted Charles’ dying day; Mrs Jennet Quinn, a lady’s companion with a deep knowledge of poisons, and a deep fear of dismissal; or Grace Petrie, Charles’ wife of four months, a woman with a scandalous past, a woman shunned by polite society. With crowds flocking to the courtroom and the shadow of suspicion falling upon Grace in the shape of the hangman’s noose, could dashing young advocate, Daniel Morgan, save her?

    But since the death of their mother, their family home has been far from a quiet haven as their bullying father is determined to marry off the girls to his greatest advantage.When the sisters discover their father had an affair many years ago, which resulted in the birth of a baby girl, they determine to find their half-sister, and their search begins in the local workhouse. Mercy had been unaware of her connection to the rich Angel family until her mother’s death-bed confession, and once she knows, she’s not at all sure that she wants to be part of the family after all…

     A Christmas to Remember Juliet Whitehall, is the eldest daughter of the Earl of Forbes. Being clumsy and tongue-tied she is in no rush to find a suitor. Who would risk taking on such a jinxed wife? Her clumsiness would only get worse when the Duke of Richfield comes to stay at their family home and of course he was coming for Christmas. Edward Burton, had lost his father, and suddenly found himself with the title of the Duke of Richfield. After being invited to stay with the Earl and Countess of Forbes, for the Christmas period, he found himself being cast in the role of a Duke in a play. He is hesitant in his role but then disaster strikes. Can a Christmas Miracle bring two unlikely and yet perfect people together in this sweet Regency romance? Christmas Masquerade Kate Whitehall, lost her joy for Christmas, when her sister Juliet married and left home. Life seemed duller. Christmas, was going to be even worse, until a friend suggested they attend a few masquerade balls. Dressed up, and behind a full mask, Kate was able to let go of her sadness just a little but could still not find the joy in the season. That was, until the man in the terrifying black mask engaged her in conversation… interesting conversation. His deep voice, strong body, and obvious intelligence became something Kate wanted more of. Yet he disappeared, not returning when he said he would. Left a little distraught she must wonder why he had shunned her? Had she done something to offend him? She cannot get him out of her mind and wants to know who was the man in the frightful mask …and would she get to meet him again?” Find out in Christmas Masquerade. The Best Time of Year Stella Lawson had played an integral part in arranging the courtships, leading to the marriages of her best friends, the sisters Juliet and Kate Whitehall. This year at Christmas, all was not going well. Their brother and a dear friend to her also, Adam Whitehall, was being pushed into courtships by his dear mama, with ladies he didn’t even know. Ladies he didn’t want to know. Stella agrees to aid him in putting off his mother’s future consorts by persuading them that Adam is a buffoon. Yet the more she helps, the more Adam seems like the perfect man, it’s a pity he’s only a friend… or is he? Find out in this collection of sweet Christmas romances.

    Many years earlier, after an unexplained absence, Julianne was relegated to a separate home by a rigidly unforgiving husband, and the Crouse women have suffered the disgrace of her assumed guilt ever since. Despite her family's strong disapproval, Annabelle is driven to pursue her mission through cobwebs and dust, finding the clues and the coded story left behind by her great-grandmother -- Why did she go? And why did she return? Annabelle has to know. Only one person, a man she grew up with but never noticed, stands with Annabelle as she discovers the parallels between her story and her great-grandmother's--two women, generations apart, experiencing what love truly is.

    . .In the heyday of the British Raj, eleven-year-old Anahita, from a noble but impoverished family, forms a lifelong friendship with the headstrong Princess Indira, the privileged daughter of Indian royalty. As the princess's official companion, Anahita accompanies her friend to England just before the outbreak of World War I. There, she meets young Donald Astbury—reluctant heir to the magnificent, remote Astbury Estate—and his scheming mother.Ninety years later, Rebecca Bradley, a young American film star, has the world at her feet. But when her turbulent relationship with her equally famous boyfriend takes an unexpected turn, she's relieved that her latest role, playing a 1920s debutante, will take her away from the glare of publicity to a distant corner of the English countryside. Shortly after filming begins at the now-crumbling Astbury Hall, Ari Malik, Anahita's great-grandson, arrives unexpectedly, on a quest for his family's past. What he and Rebecca discover begins to unravel the dark secrets that haunt the Astbury dynasty . . .A multilayered, heartbreaking tale filled with unforgettable characters caught in the sweep of history, The Midnight Rose is Lucinda Riley at her most captivating and unforgettable.

    Instead, he secretly works for the Crown by tracking down German spies on British soil, his wild reputation and society status serving as a foolproof cover.Blinded by patriotism and concern for her brother on the front lines, wealthy suffragette Grace Mabry will do whatever it takes to assist her country's cause. When she sneaks into a posh London masquerade ball to hand out white feathers of cowardice, she never imagines the chain of events she'll set off when she hands a feather to Jack. And neither of them could anticipate the extent of the danger and betrayal that follows them--or the faith they'll need to maintain hope.